U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Lawsuit
The Property Owners Association of Riverside County and other organizations, represented by Pacific Legal Foundation, filed a lawsuit on November 2, 2017 against the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
The lawsuit sought relief from the Court for the Service’s arbitrary and capricious actions in denying the delisting petition for the coastal California gnatcatcher. The Court ruled that the plaintiffs lack legal standing to proceed with the lawsuit, on July 3, 2019. Therefore, the Court will not hear the case. The plaintiffs decided not to appeal the ruling and thus to end the litigation in the District Court, in the case Center for Environmental Science, Accuracy & Reliability, et al., v. United States Department of Interior, et al., July 3, 2019.
As new scientific data become available, this may be submitted to the Service, together with a new petition to delist the coastal California gnatcatcher under the Endangered Species Act, on the grounds that the best scientific data show the gnatcatcher bird is not a subspecies, and therefore ineligible for listing as a threatened subspecies under the Act.
If the Service acts in an arbitrary and capricious manner in responding to the new delisting petition, a new lawsuit may be filed to seek relief from the Court on behalf of any property owners who are directly harmed by the listing of the gnatcatcher.
We suggest that property owners who presently are directly harmed by the listing of the gnatcatcher contact Pacific Legal Foundation to bring that to their attention. This would likely avoid the standing objection that was successfully raised in the current lawsuit.
Properties located within the coastal California gnatcatcher’s designated critical habitat are subject to its regulatory restrictions. The critical habitat designation negatively affects property owners by hindering the ability of these property owners to use their property. The designation increases the burdens of federal permitting, and decreases the value of designated property. The critical habitat regulations create uncertainty for development and reduced property values for landowners.
The regulations also cause significant socio-economic harm by blocking the development of needed homes and roadways in many areas of Southern California. The Service estimates that the economic impact of the critical habitat designation in Southern California is $915 million through 2025.
The lawsuit sought relief from the Court for the Service’s arbitrary and capricious actions in denying the delisting petition for the coastal California gnatcatcher. The Court ruled that the plaintiffs lack legal standing to proceed with the lawsuit, on July 3, 2019. Therefore, the Court will not hear the case. The plaintiffs decided not to appeal the ruling and thus to end the litigation in the District Court, in the case Center for Environmental Science, Accuracy & Reliability, et al., v. United States Department of Interior, et al., July 3, 2019.
As new scientific data become available, this may be submitted to the Service, together with a new petition to delist the coastal California gnatcatcher under the Endangered Species Act, on the grounds that the best scientific data show the gnatcatcher bird is not a subspecies, and therefore ineligible for listing as a threatened subspecies under the Act.
If the Service acts in an arbitrary and capricious manner in responding to the new delisting petition, a new lawsuit may be filed to seek relief from the Court on behalf of any property owners who are directly harmed by the listing of the gnatcatcher.
We suggest that property owners who presently are directly harmed by the listing of the gnatcatcher contact Pacific Legal Foundation to bring that to their attention. This would likely avoid the standing objection that was successfully raised in the current lawsuit.
Properties located within the coastal California gnatcatcher’s designated critical habitat are subject to its regulatory restrictions. The critical habitat designation negatively affects property owners by hindering the ability of these property owners to use their property. The designation increases the burdens of federal permitting, and decreases the value of designated property. The critical habitat regulations create uncertainty for development and reduced property values for landowners.
The regulations also cause significant socio-economic harm by blocking the development of needed homes and roadways in many areas of Southern California. The Service estimates that the economic impact of the critical habitat designation in Southern California is $915 million through 2025.